Q. What did Nebuchadnezzar do with Jerusalem's royal and noble families?

A. Daniel 1:1 = Nebuchadnezzar took the best of the royal and noble families to serve in his palace.

Q. What did these royals and nobles have that would be desirable to a king?

A. Daniel 1:4 = 1) Well-educated in every branch of learning
Gifted with knowledge and good sense
3) Have the poise needed to serve in the palace
4) Having thus a strong background, they would be prime candidates for more learning (In this case, Nebuchadnezzar would have them educated in the language and literature of the Babylonians (cf. v.4).

Q. Would these Israelites be able to eat normally during their training?

A. Daniel 1:5 = Yes. They ate from the king's kitchens.
Note: Eat well through college, young people! Many children fail school because of poor nutrition. The tragedy is that sometimes they never discover the food/learning ability connection. If you are sleepy, your mind wanders, you have trouble following your teacher's train of thought, have trouble understanding lessons, then you are not fully functioning. Eat a good breakfast to wake up your brain. This is how food works:
Protein = Brain food (meat, cheese, poultry, nuts, tofu and beans)
Grains = Energy (whole grain bread, oatmeal, shredded wheat, etc)
Fruits and Vegetables = Clean your system out.
Dairy = Keeps your bones healthy and whole.
Now, consider the absence of any of these food groups:
No protein = Brain is off
No grains = No energy
No fruits or vegetables = System clogs up
No dairy = Sore bones and joints, bad teeth.

A. Daniel 1:9 = God gave Daniel's overseer great respect for him.
Note: Do you need to take a stand for God? Trust God about the outcome. Don't be afraid to be a fool for Christ. Maybe God will give those affected great respect for you. In any case, always be true to God.

Q. The only good kosher food the king's kitchen had to offer was vegetables and water?

A. Daniel 1:12 = Yes.
Note: Just because one is well off doesn't make him immune to the effects of a rich diet. Always be aware of what you eat.

Q. How did Daniel convince his overseer to let him eat only veggies and water?

A. Daniel 1:12 = Daniel asked for a ten-day trial period and that the diet decision made to be based on the results.
Note: Now that's good management and problem solving! You may have a great idea worthy of a trial run. Go through the proper channels when getting your idea out there. This shows respect of authority, while their system is suggested to briefly postpone, while they test out your idea. Don't give ultimatums and rashly declare that the status quo should be done away with. Everybody wants a system to run effectively.
Evangelism is the same way. People believe what they believe for a reason. Just as Nebuchadnezzar thought his food system was the best money could buy and Daniel improved on it, let unbelievers see the value of the Christian life, so they can improve on theirs. But they won't see it unless you are very clear about the goodness of this life for yourself.

Q. How did the four young men do in their studies of Babylonian culture and language?

A. Daniel 1:17 = Very well. God gave them an unusual aptitude for learning the literature and science of the time.
Note: Feel free to ask God for whatever wisdom and learning aptitude you require or desire.

Q. Is there meaning in dreams and visions?

A. Daniel 1:17 = Yes.

Q. Who can understand them?

A. Daniel 1:17 = One who God gives the ability to.

Q. Did this phenomenon happen here?

A. Daniel 1:17 = Yes. Daniel was given the ability to interpret dreams.

A. Daniel 1:19 = Yes. They had distinguished themselves from the rest, beginning with their obedience to God in their diet.

Q. What fields did the four excel in?

A. Daniel 1:20 = All matters requiring wisdom and balanced judgment. They were ten times better than Nebuchadnezzar's old advisers!
Note: Is your judgment balanced? Be sure to take your time making important decisions. Impulsive actions are wisdom's exact opposite!

Q. How long did Daniel serve as the king's adviser?

A. Daniel 1:21 = About 63 years (until 538 B.C.).

Q. When did Nebuchadnezzar have his first dream?

A. Daniel 2:1 = When Daniel and the other three young men were finishing up their 2nd year of training.

Q. Did this dream upset the king?

A. Daniel 2:5 = Yes.

Q. Who did Nebuchadnezzar consult first?

A. Daniel 2:2 = His old advisers.

Q. Did they interpret the dream?

A. Daniel 2:10 = No way. They knew they couldn't do it and refused to even try.

Q. Why?

A. Daniel 2:9 = If they were wrong, they'd die.

Q. How did the king react to their response?

A. Daniel 2:12 = Not well. He ordered all his advisers to be executed.

Q. Even Daniel and the 3 other young men?

A. Daniel 2:13 = Yes.

Q. What did Daniel do?

A. Daniel 2:16 = He went to the king and asked for more time to interpret his dream.

Q. What did Daniel do with that time?

A. Daniel 2:18 = He and the three other young men prayed for God to tell them what Nebuchadnezzar's dream meant.

Q. Did God answer?

A. Daniel 2:19 = Yes. That night!

Q. What did Daniel think of that?

A. Daniel 2:20-23 = He praised God!

Q. What did Daniel praise God for?

A. Daniel 2:20-23 = 1) For being the only one who has wisdom and power
2) For determining the course of world events in removing kings and setting others on thrones
3) For giving wisdom to the wise
4) For giving knowledge to the scholars
5) For revealing deep and mysterious things
6) For knowing what lies hidden in the darkness, though God Himself is surrounded by light
7) For giving him wisdom and strength
8) For answering his prayer.

Q. How did Daniel approach the king with the answer?

A. Daniel 2:28 = He told the king that God revealed the answer -- that only God could reveal secrets.

A. Daniel 2:48-49 = To just below the king. The other three young Jews were beside him.

Q. Did Nebuchadnezzar forget his dream incident?

A. Daniel 3:5 = Apparently he did. One day, Nebuchadnezzar demanded that all people worship the statue of himself or else die.
Note: Do you think that Daniel's telling Nebuchadnezzar of his being the gold head of his dream swelled the king with pride? You betcha! Apparently, the king only heard that he was the strongest of the four nations mentioned, even though the fifth nation was overwhelmingly stronger than all the other nations combined. Man has a tendency to heed scriptures that emphasize his strong points to the detriment of the complete picture. God does give us a complete picture of ourselves and what life should be in His presence. Are you hearing all of it?

Q. And three of the king's Jewish advisers wouldn't bow. What was the inevitable confrontation with the new law like?

A. Daniel 3:16-18 = To the three young Jewish men, they felt no need to explain themselves and were sure that God would intervene if it wasn't their time to die. And if God didn't save them, so be it; they wouldn't serve false gods for anyone.
Note: Some would say that was presuming on God's grace. In fact, you might even have been taught to back off asking God for intervention. Never back off! God loves to save!

Q. Did they burn?

A. Daniel 3:25 = Only their bindings burned.

Q. Did Nebuchadnezzar respond?

A. Daniel 3:28 = Yes. Nebuchadnezzar believed in their God once again, even so far as to make a new law forbidding to speak evil against the Israelites' God.

Q. What became of these three young men?

A. Daniel 3:30 = They got promoted again.

Q. What did Nebuchadnezzar do with the experience?

A. Daniel 4:1 = Nebuchadnezzar sent messages to all the natins througout the world, telling them how God performed for him. He mentioned in those letters about his dreams foretelling of God's eternal kingdom to come.

Q. But then a second dream came, didn't it?

A. Daniel 4:5 = Yes.

Q. Could Nebuchadnezzar have prevented the prophesy from happening?

A. Daniel 4:27 = Yes.

Q. How?

A. Daniel 4:27 = If he had stopped sinning and did what was right, Nebuchadnezzar might have continued to prosper.

Q. What sin was Nebuchadnezzar deep in?

A. Daniel 4:27 = Nebuchadnezzar was not merciful to the poor.

Q. What does God have to say about those who treat the poor badly?

A. Daniel 4:27 = Those who treat the poor badly are doing a wicked thing.

Q. And Nebuchadnezzar didn't get the connection between God's provision for him and His provision for the poor?

A. Daniel 4:28 = No.

Q. How long did this prophecy take to fulfill?

A. Daniel 4:29 = Twelve months.

Q. Did Nebuchadnezzar forget how he came to power?

A. Daniel 4:29-30 = Yes. Nebuchadnezzar imagined that he had great power and by it, created his kingdom in its entirety.

Q. How did Nebuchadnezzar lose his mind?

A. Daniel 4:31-32 = God relieved him of it.

Q. How?

A. Daniel 4:31 = God called Nebuchadnezzar's doom down from heaven.

Q. When was the next time Nebuchadnezzar acknowledged God?

A. Daniel 4:34 = Seven years later.

Q. The trial was over. Did Nebuchadnezzar pout?

A. Daniel 4:34 = No. Ne praised God and worshiped the Most High and honored Him too.

A.b Daniel 4:37 = Nebuchadnezzar praised and glorified God as king of Heaven, declaring all God's acts to be jus and true, and that He was able to humble those who are proud.
Note: god is able to make you insane! If it will teach you to acknowledge Him correctly. Is that where the slang word "touched" comes from? God's touching the mind? I pray I remember God always!

Q. Did Belshazzar take to the throne before Israel was freed from captivity?

A. Daniel 5:13 = Yes.

Q. Why did Belshazzar need Daniel's services?

A. Daniel 5:5,6 = The finger of God wrote a foreign message on his wall during one of his parties.

Q. What brought this about?

A. Daniel 5:2,3 = Belshazzar and his friends partied with the Temple cups that were taken by Nebuchadnezzar to Babylon.

Q. Did this strange occurence scare Belshazzar?

A. Daniel 5:6 = Yes.

Q. Who remembered Daniel all these years later?

A. Daniel 5:10 = The queen mother.

Q. Did she describe Daniel accurately?

A. Daniel 5:11 = Somewhat. She described Daniel thusly: 1) As having the spirit of the holy gods
2) But also as one filled with divine knowledge.
Note: Sometimes folks try to explain away a believer's God-sent wisdom's origins. But all wisdom originates only in God.

Q. Did Daniel accept payment for interpreting the handwriting on the wall?

Q. How did the jealous ones finally succeed in getting Daniel in trouble?

A. Daniel 6:5 = They snaked through Daniel's religious beliefs to find fault.
Note: How common this is nowadays!

Q. How did Daniel end up in the lion's den?

A. Daniel 6:8,9 = Thejealous princes and other palace officials tricked King Darius into signing a law making it illegal for anyone to worship God for 30 minutes a day. Then they tattled to the king about Daniel's ignoring the new law.

Q. Was Darius upset about this trickery?

A. Daniel 6:14 - Yes.

Q. Couldn't the king just veto it?

A. Daniel 6:8 = No. It was against the law to veto a law!

Q. How did Darius deal with this terrible situation?

A. Daniel 6:16 = Darius blessed Daniel, asking God to rescue him.
Note: What a plan! I like it and hope to remember to bless and ask God to intervene in everything!

Q. What else did Darius do?

A. Daniel 6:18 = Darius was up all night praying and fasting for Daniel.

Q. Waht became of the sneaky officials and princes?

A. Daniel 6:24 = They were arrested and thrown in the lion's den, along with their entire families.

Q. Did Darius put worshiping God into law?

A. Daniel 6:26 = Yes.

Q. Who reigned in Babylon besides Darius the Mede?

A. Daniel 6:28 = Cyrus, the Persian.

Q. Did Daniel dream other prophecies?

A. Daniel 7:1 = Yes. While he slept, Daniel dreamt of future events.

Q. In what order?

A. 1) Daniel 7:1-3 = Daniel dreamt a sleeping dream of Four Beasts during the first year of Belshazzar's reign.
2) Daniel 8 = Daniel dreamt a waking dream by a river of a ram and a goat during the third year of Belshazzar's reign.

Q. How do we know wht period of time these dreams refer to?

A. Daniel 8:17 = Gabriel told him the dreams referred to the time of the end.

Q. Is there a name for this time?

A. Daniel 8:19 = Yes. It is called The Time of Wrath.

Q. Did Daniel understand Gabriel's explanation of the ram and the goat?

A. Daniel 8:27 = No.

Q. Was Daniel aware of Jeremiah's prophecy of Jerusalem's 70 year length of captivity before having these visions?

A. Daniel 9:4-6 = Daniel was enlightened as to why all the trouble came to Israel. Israel constantly rebelled and brought judgment upon themselves. They were warned a lot! All judgments were carried out to the letter, from Moses on forward. God is truly just.

Q. What is the right approach in asking God for help?

A. Daniel 9:18 = "We do not ask because we deserve help, but because You [God] are so merciful."

Q. Why did Daniel beg earnestly for God's help on behalf of Israel?

A. Daniel 9:19 = Daniel loved God and didn't want His name smeared with such sinful people.
Note: Are you concerned for God's reputation? Does your life mirror Him or sin? It is an honor to represent God well! Make that your goal! It happens when you love your neighbor as yourself and show mercy to the poor.

A. Daniel 12:10 = No. Only those who are wise will know what the craziness of end times mean.
Note 1: Learn God's Word! It is not enough to be saved. These are troubled times and you will be strong in them when you understand how biblical these times are.

Note 2: Daniel gives us more reasons to tune into God than can be numbered. I am inspired to fast and pray. I already mourn for the times as I witness rebellion in full swing like in no other time. My heart is heavy these days. I look forward to the end of evil days and wonder how it will feel to stand (or kneel) in God's presence. I have seen a little of heavenly things. I am blown away! Pray and fast with me so that we will have greater access to spiritual happenings now!